BREAKING NEWS: airliner missing within Egyptian FIR

[A0283]

Transcript Egypt press conference

Let me try to transcribe what has been said in english (my arabic is not good enough):

Originally announced press conference start 1700EGY time. Started 1715 EGY time.

Introduction by a gentleman ... but CNN had no sound at that moment.

Then start by Chairman Mr. Ayman al-Muqaddam ... Head of the Commission of Inquiry.

Starts with condolences.

Some explanation apparently why he was sitting there alone. But not clear to me yet (will check the recording of the press conference that i made).

Dignitaries visited on day 1 after the accident. Egyptian airforce send 5 planes with the Egyptian and international investigators to the site. Egyptian army guarded the site. Major pieces photographed by the investigators and their geo coordinates taken.

Investigators 47 plus advisors 11 to total of 58 participating.
EGY 29 + RUS 7 + EIRE 3 + FRA 6 + GER 2, + Airbus advisors 10, EASA 1 = 58 persons participating.

5 groups have been formed:
1. recorders,
2. accident site,
3. operations - crew, atc, airline information, meteorology,
4. aircraft and systems,
5. medical, forensics,
ALL groups are still in the Information Gathering Phase.

Under Egyptian Law 28, ICAO Annex 13.

Weather at the moment (today) is bad. When weather improves investigators make new visits.
Wreckage will be moved to Cairo and investigated methodically.
Aircraft wreckage will be searched for computers with non-volatile-memory.

Objectives of the investigation:

1. debris area is wide, 13km long, which suggests an inflight breakup, a number of parts are still missing, search underway for them,

2. observation ... origin of breakup still unknown,

3. recorders were recovered on Day 1, both successfully downloaded, and preliminary review performed,
FDR shows TO at UTC 03-50-06, last 04-13-20, total duration 23 min 14 sec <have to check this>,
Last ALT 30,888 ft and aircraft in CLB Mode.
Last recorded speed 281 knots.
Modes (autopilot) A/P1 engaged till the end of the recording.

4. CVR
- first listening was done,
- at the moment the team is working on the transcript,
- we note that a noise was heard in the last second,
- spectral analysis on the recording will be performed by specialized labs,
- investigators got no intelligence from other parties... if parties have info please come forward.

5. A number of media reports make suggestions with information/intelligence said to be based on official sources. The investigation team has not had access to such information. We ask parties to provide that information to the investigation.

6. ALL scenarios are still open. There are no conclusions as yet.

Image (CNN?) shown in the background altitudes 3,000 - 20,000 - 25,000 - 29,600 - 33,000 - and as stated ending 30,888 while in CLB MODE.

The Chairman read it out in clear english. Then gave time for a limited number of questions. He says he has to return to his team - read investigation.

A rather furious sounding person present (CNN says a journalist) , starts normal then increasing in anger, demanded that the chairman spoke in arabic. After some noise exchanges and happenings the chairman started reading out the same declaration in arabic.

Chairman:"... i can read in arabic...if you want..."
Chairman:"...asked other parties to come over, but they decided not to participate (A0283 - in the press conference) ... perhaps they had other ... "...


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Apart from the transcript above ...

First impression. Clear explanation which you expect at this stage of the investigation. Was impressed by the statement being made in english first, also understand the demand for arabic of course. But the fact that all people killed were foreign might also be called 'being sensitive' to the relatives of those killed. Shows the extreme importance of clear communications during investigations. If the chairman had said something like "out of piety i make a statement in international english first, and then repeat it in arabic", that may have calmed the mood. Have to note that the introduction of the press conference as transmitted by CNN had no sound. So i could have missed something at the start.

The press conference was clear, up to what you expect, though rather late in delivery. But the promise is made that more regular conferences will be held from now. How everybody interpretates the contents ... i leave that upto the readers.

The conference provided information on a number of issues, including missing parts and information.

Note that the chairman talked about a NOISE and did not use the word EXPLOSION.

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CNN now says (after the conference) - after arabic translation - original press conference would have been by EGY Minister of Aviation and a RUS representative. And only at the start of the conference it became clear that it would be the Chairman. The journalist complaining about this absence and appartenly suggestion that there was a conspiracy.

Apparently the chairman also suggested that the sound could have come from exploding Lithium batteries.


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